Sama-Chakewa : Such Is The Myth And Significance Of The Sama-Chakewa Festival
Sama Chakewa
Sama Chakewa is a festival of wishing longevity, health and prosperity to brothers and sisters. This festival is celebrated from the second date to the full moon date. On the second day of the festival, the sisters start the work of making clay shapes for the Sama Chakewa festival and intensify the work of shaping the characters from the Kharna or Paran of Chhath festival.
Reflecting the ancient social, family rites and traditions of Mithilanchal, this festival is a form of folk drama in which female narrators and characters depict earthy human, animal and bird figures. Cultural expert Ram Bharos Kapadi says that the Sama Chakewa festival, which is still alive and well in the oral tradition, is a unique cultural heritage. According to him, the love of brothers and sisters is the main basis of this festival, which shows the immortal love, dedication, devotion and reverence of brothers and sisters and husband and wife.
In the square, all the women put their baskets in one place and sit in a circle. In this festival, the mustache symbol of the character Chulyaha Chugla, who gossips about husband and wife, is burnt.
What is in Sama Chakewa?
Sama is the female character and Chakewa is the male character. Both are made of clay in the form of birds. Similarly, other characters are also made of clay. During the Sama Chakewa festival, the sisters entertain themselves by singing songs praising their brother and abusing the character Chugla.
Maithil Lalna from Kharna or Paran of Chhath is made in the shape of clay and kept in a lid at night.
According to the traditional belief, it is also customary to feed Sama Chakewa cold and dubo in the grass. In the square, all the women put their baskets in one place and sit in a circle. In this festival, the symbol of the mustache of the character Chhulyaha Chugala, who gossips about the husband and wife, is burnt. This sequence is found to run until the full moon.
There are characters like Sama Chakewal, Chugla, Dholiya, Bhariya, Satbhaiya, Khanjanchidaiya, Vanatitar, Jhanji Kutta, Bhaiya Battakani, Maliniya and Vrindavan among others.
In the Sama Chakewa festival, the sisters wish to get the desired fruit by making clay figures. She enjoys the conversation by moving the idol. Sometimes she sets fire to Vrindavan and sometimes she burns Chugla’s mouth with fire.
All the clay idols in the basket come to life when the woman plays the song as a character.
Narrative element
Sama Chakewa has been practiced in Mithila since ancient times. The first discussion of this is found in the Padma Purana. It is based entirely on brotherly love. It has a lyrical structure that describes brother’s heroism, generosity and admiration, depicts sister’s wonderful brotherly love, condemns gossip as a symbol of gossip, touches moments of Sama’s in-laws and conveys a short narrative of expression.
The story of Sama Chakeva is mentioned in the Skanda Purana, according to which Shyama (Sama) and Chakeva are husband and wife. Shyama’s father is Krishna and her husband is Charuvakya (Chakeva). Charuvakya lived in the ashram. While Shyama was going to the ashram to meet her husband, Chugla went to Krishna and said, “Shyama is in love with a monk!” Krishna became angry and cursed and made a bird.
When Brother Shambha found out, he began to panic. He persuaded his father. I didn’t have any skills. Then he started penance. On the full moon day of Kartik, penance was completed and the gift was received in the form of sister Shyama (Sama). So this festival is celebrated by the sister for the brother.
Unable to bear the bereavement, Charuvakya’s wife became a bird in the form of Chakewa due to her penance. He started living with his wife Sama, who had a bird. Meanwhile, opponents set fire to their residence in Vrindavan. He tried hard to get up, but in the end, due to his penance and strength, he was re-incarnated as a human being.
Some songs
In this festival, family life and folk faith of Mithilanchal are inseparable. Not only human beings, but also domestic birds, squirrels, wild animals and wildlife are seen in a wonderful combination.
Wherever there is society and family, there are characters like gossiping and conspiring. In this festival, which gives the impression of puppet dance, it is not performed with a rope, it is performed by hand and as a female narrator, she sings the life story on the basis of folk tunes in which the excitement of a unique and unique style of public life is flowing.
When a woman leaves her house with an idol in a basket and goes out to play weeds, she sings:
डालाले बहार भेली, बहिनी से पलाँ बहिनो
फलाँ भइया लेल डाला छीन, सुनु गे राम सजनी…।
It is important to mention Janakpurdham in the song sung wishing good luck to the brother and his family. It also points to the antiquity and prosperity of Janakpur:
सिरी रे जनकपुरसँ आबि गेल भ्रमरा
लागि गेल पनमा दुकान…।
When the gossip turns, the woman sings the following song, holding it in her left hand and setting it on fire on the right side of the jute, which is called the mustache.
धान-धान-धान, भइया कोठी धान
चुगला कोठी भुस्सा…।
Symbolically, Bhaiyakothi is wished for the prosperity of the brother as paddy and rice, while the evil tendency of gossiping has been done by showing that the house has straw and ashes.
Along with prosperity, there are also brothers and warriors. When there is no one to put out the fire in Vrindavan, the sister sings a song of faith in her brother:
वृन्दावनमे आगि लागै
कोइ ने मिझावे हे
हमर भैया फलना भैया
दौडि-दौडि मिझाबे हे…।
The song of Sama Chakewa’s immersion is touching:
सामचको, सामचको अइह हे
जोतल खेतमे बइसिह हे…।
On the day of the full moon, it is customary to disperse all the earthen pots, telling Sama Chakewa to come and live in the garbage field again next year.
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